Charm Deficiency
by E.M. Nemesis
Summary: Haru wouldn't exactly call it 'settling for second' anymore, because in baseball, everyone knows one prefers snagging second base to first. YamamotoxHaru


Here I am, writing my first anime/manga story. I'll try to get this thing to be good read (Behave! Sit!). The disclaimer is implied. Of course I don't own them! Well, here goes nothing I suppose.

P.S. Hope you like, xxkoffexx!

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"Tsuna-san, where are you?" Haru whined as she stepped down from his porch and dragged her feet to the curb. Anyone could tell she was disappointed. She wanted to give Tsuna a present she had bought him the previous day. It was a tan shirt, and it looked "so Tsuna" that she just had to buy it. Tsuna wasn't home though, and this made Haru mopey and agitated. Nana said he had left with Gokudera and Yamamoto about a half hour before, and had no idea where they were planning on going. Kyoko thought it was another sumo tournament, and went home to see if her brother had gone, leaving poor Haru all alone.

She walked the streets, in search of her beloved mafioso, and decided she'd stop at the park for a while. The sky was turning by then, going from blue to a combination of fiery yellow and orange hues. Haru was desperate by then. She had so wanted to show Tsuna, and now she'd have to wait till who knows when, or at least till they got back from the tournament.

'_It must be another tournament,'_ she thought as she sat on a bench to attempt to stop the severe aching in her throat. No crying now, not over Tsuna. He'd be back, and she could give it to him then, even if it would probably be at least a week. She stood up, straight and tall and began to march home determinately. She was going to be a beautiful, kind wife to Tsuna, and if she couldn't handle him going away, she was totally weak.

Haru was smiling as she passed the baseball field on the eastern side of the park. There was a sharp crack of bat on ball, and a shout of 'Look out!'. A baseball hit her on the upper arm before she could even turn her head. With a cry of 'Ouch!', Haru's hand gripped her arm as her eyes inspected the damage. This was extremely irritating, and it would surely leave a bruise. Haru turned her head toward the diamond, brows furrowed and a pout on her lips. She would surely have given that batter what-for, if he hadn't been Yamamoto, of course. Her face softened at his approaching figure. Yamamoto was a kind-hearted boy, and he looked as though he was sorry. That was enough for the ever-forgiving Haru. She was in a much better mood than she was at the bench anyway.

"Sorry about that, Haru. Are you okay?" he apologized. He rubbed the back of his head and bent over to pick up the baseball.

"I'm alright. Yamamoto-san must be very good to get it this far," she replied lazily. Haru looked past him to the baseball diamond once more, realizing the distance that ball got. Then something dawned on her. If Yamamoto was there, then Tsuna must be with him!

"Yamamoto-san! Is Tsuna here? His mother said he was with Yamamoto-san and Gokudera-san."

"Oh, sorry Haru, he's not here. He and Gokudera walked here with me and then left. I just came to practice and they didn't really want to stay, I guess, haha!" Yamamoto laughed leisurely. Haru became disappointed all over again with this news, and her smile turned to a frown.

"Hm? What's with the long face? Did you need him for something?" he asked curiously. Haru pulled out the nicely wrapped gift and showed it to him.

"Oh, I see. Haha, well, he and Gokudera will probably be getting back to his place soon, so you could head there."

The sun was almost gone, and a small sliver of light was left on the horizon. The lights surrounding the field had been turned on. She looked up to the sky as Yamamoto turned around, tossing the ball in the air and catching it again. Upon hearing his footsteps moving away across the grass, Haru was brought back and her head snapped down to look at Yamamoto's retreating figure. A look of uneasiness crossed her features and she ran up to him instead of toward Tsuna's house, in the other direction.

"Would it be alright if Haru were to walk there with Yamamoto-san? Father doesn't want Haru to walk around alone in the dark," she questioned as she walked alongside him. She didn't want to be a bother, even though she knew he was probably thinking just that, but walking home alone then wasn't a comforting option.

"Hm? Well, I guess so. Would you mind waiting a little while longer though? I was planning on staying for another half-hour or so," he informed her.

"Sure. Haru has never seen Yamamoto-san practice, actually," she replied happily. Haru didn't mind waiting, really. She was just glad there was someone there so she didn't have to walk alone in the dark. Haru kept a book in her purse anyway. She was also curious about Yamamoto's skills. She had gone to one of his games with Tsuna and Kyoko and the others a while back, but wondered if that sword training Tsuna had mentioned to Gokudera one time (Haru had overheard from the kitchen with Kyoko) had made him better. Surely it would improve his swing.

Haru sat down on the bleachers and opened her book. For a few minutes he would throw the balls in the air and hit them across the field. Haru watched, her interest piqued by the distance each hit got. He was better than she remembered. Noticing he had stopped, Haru looked at him inquisitively. He hadn't run out of baseballs. Perhaps he was finished. She was very surprised with what he asked her next though.

"Hey, Haru, wanna do something fun?" He had a wide grin spread across his face as he asked this.

"Hahi?" she mumbled.

"Come over here!"

Haru got down from the bleachers and he turned his back to her and dug around in his bag. As she approached him he tossed a baseball glove to her. She almost missed, but managed to catch it clumsily. She looked at it confusedly.

"I don't get it Yamamoto-san."

"There's nothing to get."

Haru didn't want to play games with the boy, so she put the glove on. She was annoyed, to say the least, with his reaction. He had started laughing. Haru never appreciated being laughed at.

"What? I put it on, don't I?" she asked, becoming annoyed with his rudeness.

"It goes on the other hand. Here, let me," he said, and before Haru could protest he sauntered over, pulled the glove off, and put it on her right hand that she so kindly extended toward him. She thought it'd felt odd on the left.

"Oh, well, you could have just said so instead of laughing. I could have switched it myself," she pointed out.

"Haha, I guess so. Well, you never answered my question," he smiled good naturedly. Haru was confused, once again. _'Has Yamamoto always been this baffling?'_ Haru thought.

"What question, Yamamoto-san?" Haru was becoming exasperated beyond belief.

"Do you want to do something fun?" he asked again.

"I thought I answered that when I came down here and put the glove on."

He smiled and told her to go to outfield and try to catch the balls he hit and then throw them back to him. That way he wouldn't have to run and get them every time he ran out. Haru looked at the glove and agreed. She ran to outfield, and as soon as she turned around Yamamoto nodded to her, threw the ball, and hit it. Thanks to the lights, Haru could see the round, white object descending. She started with a slow jog, before going into a full on sprint. She reached up and caught the ball in the glove. When she was sure she had a hold on it, and hadn't just thought she caught it, she pulled her arm down and took it from the glove. That was when she realized she had been smiling the whole time. It was more fun than she thought it would have been.

"I caught it! Haha!" she said aloud, excitedly. She then understood what he loved about baseball so much. It was really quite thrilling!

"Good job, Haru!" Yamamoto called from across the field.

Haru threw the ball as hard as she could. It came up a little short, but it bounced off the ground into Yamamoto's outstretched hand.

"Let's see if you can catch this one!" he called enthusiastically, and the earlier performance was repeated.

It went on like that for at least another twenty minutes, both of them having a pretty good time. Haru would miss one every few times, but her mess ups became few and far between once she got the hang of it. Yamamoto could see she was starting to get tired though, so he decided to call it a night, and they began walking back to Tsuna's house.

"That was more fun than I thought it would be, Yamamoto-san!" Haru told the boy as she smiled up at him.

"Haha, I'm glad you enjoyed it! I had a pretty good time too," he laughed jovially and put an arm around her. She grimaced and he let go. He looked quizzical, but realization dawned on his features.

"Oh, I get it. Only have eyes for Tsuna, eh?" and he chuckled.

"No, no, it's not that Yamamoto-san. It's the bruise from the baseball earlier," she said as she blushed. Yamamoto's touch was so warm, and he had an aura of protectiveness. She was glad it was he who was walking her home. She almost preferred him to Tsuna. _Almost_. He was in second place, at least.

"Haha, so then _this_ is okay?" he asked, very laid-back, as he snaked his arm across her shoulders once more, being very gentle about it. And her blush had almost faded, too.

They approached the Sawada household, and Haru became excited once more. She was about to give her present to Tsuna! She was sure he'd like it. Only one thing kept her from completely immersing herself in thoughts of him though, and that was Yamamoto's arm. She felt something she never felt with Tsuna when she was with Yamamoto just then. It was a calm feeling, like as long as he was there, nothing could touch her. She really cared about Tsuna, and he saved her from drowning, but she never felt more safe than she did right then, with Yamamoto Takeshi.

"I hope Tsuna loves your gift," said Yamamoto as they got to the front step. Only when he leaned down and placed a tiny kiss on the side of her head did she snap out of her thoughts. She looked up at the back of his head, her mouth slightly agape, as he opened the door and stepped inside. She blushed deeply and went in after him. All Haru knew was that the gap in charm between Tsuna and Yamamoto had just been shortened dramatically, and 'settling for second' seemed like a very desirable option. After all, in baseball, one should prefer getting a second base run to a first.

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Ack, so fluffy, it burns! This is my first fluff in a _long _time, and I suppose I just have to get used to writing them again. The ending is so corny. R&R.


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